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U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton lambasted Donald Trump's foreign policy platform as "dangerously incoherent" in a speech on Thursday that cast her Republican rival as both a dangerous and laughable figure. Clinton did not reveal anything new about her own foriegn policy.
When examining Clinton’s track record as secretary of state, her foreign policy experience has included support for the 2009 coup in Honduras, where the democratically-elected president, Manuel Zelaya, was ousted by the Honduran military in alliance with opposition parties.
Clinton supported the Merida Initiative, a U.S. program that has played a key role in militarizing Mexico's war on drugs.
During her 2008 presidential campaign, Clinton described Plan Colombia, a massive U.S. military aid package to the Colombian government, as a huge “success story," despite widepread criticism from human rights organizations.
As U.S. Senator, she voted for the war in Iraq in 2003.
In an ironic twist, Clinton wore orange for National Gun Violence Awareness Day, while holding a foriegn policy record of U.S. violence and intervention around the world.
David Swanson, author, activist, journalist, and radio host, wrote for teleSUR, "Clinton (as secretary of state) led the advocacy for escalation in Afghanistan; led the lobbying for a war to overthrow the government of Libya creating the disaster now found there; backed a military coup in Honduras; defended dictators and torturers in Tunisia and Egypt until the last possible moment, and in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia until the present moment; threatened assault on Iran and lied about Iranian nukes even after finally being compelled to support the nuclear agreement with Iran ...
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"(She) supported the Moroccan occupation of Western Sahara; opposed opportunities for peace in Syria at every turn, and much much more. Clinton had in fact joined Republicans in pushing for the disarmament of Syria as early as 2004. On Afghanistan, Libya, and the attack on Osama bin Laden, Secretary of State Clinton was more hawkish than Secretary of Defense Robert Gates."
Clinton, the front-runner in the race to become the Democratic presidential nominee, delivered her speech as she seeks to shift her attention to the Nov. 8 election against Republican rival Trump and away from Bernie Sanders, a U.S. senator from Vermont, who is continuing his bid for the nomination.
Trump, a billionaire businessman who has never held elected office or worked in government before, says he has experience dealing with foreign governments through setting up hotels, resorts, golf courses and beauty pageants in foreign countries. Clinton, who is also a former U.S. senator and former first lady, mocked this.
"He says he has foreign policy experience because he ran the Miss Universe pageant in Russia," she said to loud laughter.
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